Sponsored by:

YOUR SOURCE FOR MMA NEWS

Archive for January, 2010

NEW YORK (January 26, 2009)– For the first time in history, Electronic Arts Inc., (NASDAQ: ERTS) will offer live mixed martial arts (MMA) fight action online with a free of charge stream of the highly anticipated STRIKEFORCE welterweight (170 pounds) matchup between wrestling powerhouses Joe “Diesel” Riggs (32-10) and Jay “The Thoroughbred” Hieron (18-4) from BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Florida this Saturday, January 30.

The live stream of the STRIKEFORCE: Miami preliminary bout will begin at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on the official EA SPORTS™ MMA website (www.easportsmma.com <http://www.easportsmma.com/> ), the online platform for EA SPORTS forthcoming MMA video game title in which STRIKEFORCE will be featured as a premiere league. The stream will precede the live SHOWTIME® telecast of the event’s main fight card, which begins at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).

Riggs, a 27 year old native of Phoenix, Arizona, will attempt to extend a four fight win streak that began with his second round (2:05) TKO of Luke Stewart in a STRIKEFORCE: Destruction bout at HP Pavilion in San Jose, California on November 21, 2008.

In his last effort under the STRIKEFORCE banner, Riggs dominated hard-hitting “The New York Badass” Phil Baroni for three consecutive rounds of action before walking away with a unanimous judges’ decision victory at St. Louis’ Scottrade Center on June 6, 2009.

Hieron, a former nationally ranked NCAA wrestler for Hofstra University, has been victorious in each of his last six starts. The Long Island, New York native made his STRIKEFORCE debut in his last effort, earning a unanimous decision win over Jesse “J.T. Money” Taylor at HP Pavilion on August 15, 2009.

A former troubled teen, Hieron has since become an inspiration, winning a world title with the now defunct International Fight League (IFL) and relocating to Las Vegas in order to train with the fight squad headed by MMA legend Randy “The Natural” Couture.

Slated for release later this year, EA SPORTS MMA will feature the most authentic, intense and broad mixed martial arts experience to date – complete with a vast array of top fighters and fighting styles from around the world. EA SPORTS MMA will be available on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system and the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system in 2010.

The game will feature a host of STRIKEFORCE fighters, the six-sided STRIKEFORCE cage, the commentary team of Frank Shamrock and Mauro Ranallo, and ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. Legendary mixed martial arts referee “Big John” McCarthy will preside over the in-ring action and bring his in-depth knowledge of the sport to help deliver a truly authentic MMA experience. [confirm we have signed agreements and marketing rights to mention these people]

EA SPORTS™ is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, global videogame competitions and breakthrough digital experiences. EA SPORTS delivers personal access to the emotion of sports through industry-leading sports simulation videogames, including Madden NFL football, FIFA Soccer, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA® Football and NCAA Basketball, Fight Night boxing and Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® golf, while EA SPORTS Active Personal Trainer for the Wii is the most critically acclaimed product available for interactive fitness.

For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums, fantasy leagues and game communities, please visit www.easports.com <http://www.easports.com/> to connect, share and compete.

Tickets for STRIKEFORCE: Miami are on sale at the BankAtlantic Center ticket office and Ticketmaster (800) 745-3000 as well as online at www.Ticketmaster.com <http://www.Ticketmaster.com> and www.Strikeforce.com <http://www.Strikeforce.com> .

I’ll admit that I didn’t get to watch Ultimate Fight Night this past Monday. It’s rare that I miss a UFC event, but I was tied up in my own training and some other things; consequently I could not watch the event live on Spike TV.

After reading the blogs and MMA news sites, I knew I had to at least check out the main event , which I had DVR’d. I read a lot of stuff from Nate Diaz saying how he was robbed in the split decision outcome and how Maynard didn’t come to fight, etc. etc. Based on what I read on the internet and heard from Nate himself on the Sherdog Radio Show, I expected to see a , mostly, one sided boxing match with Nate Diaz using his reach to his advantage.

I didn’t see that. This fight was a lot closer then Diaz made it sound.

I am on the Diaz war wagon as much as anyone else, But Gray Maynard looked more impressive in this fight. He was able to neutralize the extremely long reach of Diaz, get inside, and execute some one punch counter strikes and a few two/three punch combinations. Maynard’s style was more effective, in my opinion, then the pit pat boxing style of Nate Diaz, which wasn’t a real threat to Maynard at any point in the fight. Additionally, Maynard knocked Diaz down twice, and looked to be more aggressive at certain points of the fight.

It’s not a boxing match, it’s a MMA fight, where points are scored on aggression and cage control. It was a close fight, and not one I want to see again, but I don’t think it was a controversial win.

BJ Penn just announced on his website that he will be defending his UFC lightweight title against New Jersey’s Frankie “The Answer” Edgar. Barring any pre-fight injuries, the bout will take place at UFC 112 on April 10th in Abu Dhabi.

Edgar is 7-1 in the UFC and his only loss was in a bout with another top lightweight contender, Gray Maynard.

Web programmer by day, practicing mixed martial artist at night, Larry Vollmer Jr. brings the latest news from the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the rest of the mixed martial arts world - a fast-spreading obsession on TV and online. These are the bouts - they occur in an octagon-shaped "ring" - that test men's souls.